P(acman)——new method to Unlock Virtually All Areas of the Fruit Fly Genome

P(acman) takes bite out of deciphering Drosophila DNA– a new method of introducing DNA into the genome of fruit flies or Drosophila – promises to transform the ability of scientists to study the structure and function of virtually all the fly's genes, and the method may be applicable to other frequently studied organisms such as mice, said its Baylor College of Medicine developers in an article in the current issue of the journal Science.
P/phiC31 artificial chromosome for manipulation, or P(acman), combines three recently developed technologies: BAC+recombineering +phiC31-mediated transgenesis:

1. The bacterial artificial chromosome(BAC), allows the scientist to maintain large chunks of DNA in the bacteria, but it is present in only one or few copies. However, the bacteria can be induced to produce many copies of the DNA when needed.
2. Recombineering facilitates the scientist to clone large chunks of DNA and subsequently allows them to make specific mutations anywhere he or she wants in the gene.
3. The third technique allows the researcher to pinpoint where he or she wants to the mutant gene to go in the genetic blueprint of the fly, eliminating the apples-and-oranges problem. This third technique – phiC31 – works also in mouse and human cells, implying that this new technique could be used in those cells as well.

http://www.bcm.edu/news/item.cfm?newsID=765
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/11/061130191541.htm